Climate Change Adaptation Research Papers (original) (raw)

Physics defines heat as; Thermal energy transferred from a hotter system to a cooler system that is in contact, the heat energy unit is Joules (J), In general, three different modes of heat transfer are recognized: Conduction, convection,... more

Physics defines heat as; Thermal energy transferred from a hotter system to a cooler system that is in contact, the heat energy unit is Joules (J), In general, three different modes of heat transfer are recognized: Conduction, convection, and radiation. The theory of the greenhouse effect erases the infrared radiation and the heat transfer by contact of the gas molecules in the atmosphere (14°C), and teaches us that the greenhouse gases (0.04% of the atmosphere), They receive a radiation heat transfer from the surface of the earth whose average temperature is 2.82°C, and these gases re-radiate it in all directions. We see many errors in the theory of the greenhouse effect; 1. When radiation heat transfer occurs is produced by changes in the electronic configurations of constituent atoms or molecules and transported by electromagnetic waves or photons. 2. It tells us that the surface of the Earth does not transfer its heat to the Atmosphere by conduction, when it is in contact with its surface, but by radiation. 3. It tells us that the Sun emitting infrared radiation at all known wavelengths does not emit infrared radiation at the wavelength emitted by the earth's surface. 4. It does not take into account all molecules in the atmosphere that also emit their temperature as infrared radiation. 5. It only takes into account 0.04% of the molecules in the atmospheric system, as a new way of transferring heat, not by its own infrared radiation, but as a way to radiate the heat radiated by the earth's atoms. 6. It teaches us that the earth's surface with an average temperature of 2.82°C can transfer irradiated heat to the greenhouse gases of the atmospheric system, with an average temperature of 14°C.

The majority of vulnerability and adaptation scholarship, policies and programs focus exclusively on climate change or global environmental change. Yet, individuals, communities and sectors experience a broad array of multi-scalar and... more

The majority of vulnerability and adaptation scholarship, policies and programs focus exclusively on climate change or global environmental change. Yet, individuals, communities and sectors experience a broad array of multi-scalar and multi-temporal, social, political, economic and environmental changes to which they are vulnerable and must adapt. While extensive theoretical—and increasingly empirical—work suggests the need to explore multiple exposures, a clear conceptual framework which would facilitate analysis of vulnerability and adaptation to multiple interacting socioeconomic and biophysical changes is lacking. This review and synthesis paper aims to fill this gap through presenting a conceptual framework for integrating multiple exposures into vulnerability analysis and adaptation planning. To support applications of the framework and facilitate assessments and comparative analyses of community vulnerability, we develop a comprehensive typology of drivers and exposures experienced by coastal communities. Our results reveal essential elements of a pragmatic approach for local-scale vulnerability analysis and for planning appropriate adaptations within the context of multiple interacting exposures. We also identify methodologies for characterizing exposures and impacts, exploring interactions and identifying and prioritizing responses. This review focuses on coastal communities; however, we believe the framework, typology and approach will be useful for understanding vulnerability and planning adaptation to multiple exposures in various social-ecological contexts.

Inspired by the commercial desires of global brands and retailers to access the lucrative green consumer market, carbon is increasingly being counted and made knowable at the mundane sites of everyday production and consumption, from the... more

Inspired by the commercial desires of global brands and retailers to access the lucrative green consumer market, carbon is increasingly being counted and made knowable at the mundane sites of everyday production and consumption, from the carbon footprint of a plastic kitchen fork to that of an online bank account. Despite the challenges of counting and making commensurable the global warming impact of a myriad of biophysical and societal activities, this desire to communicate a product or service's carbon footprint has sparked complicated carbon calculative practices and enrolled actors at literally every node of multi-scaled and vastly complex global supply chains. Against this landscape, this paper critically analyses the counting practices that create the 'e' in 'CO2e'. It is shown that, central to these practices are a series of tools, models and databases which, in building upon previous work (Eden 2012; Star and Griesemer 1989) we conceptualize here as 'boundary objects'. By enrolling everyday actors from farmers to consumers, these objects abstract and stabilize greenhouse gas emissions from their messy material and social contexts into units of CO2e which can then be translated along a product's supply chain, thereby establishing a new currency of 'everyday supply chain carbon'. However, in making all greenhouse gas-related practices commensurable in enrolling and stabilizing the transfer of information between multiple actors these objects oversee a process of simplification reliant upon, and subject to, a multiplicity of approximations, assumptions, errors, discrepancies and/or omissions. Further the outcomes of these tools are subject to the politicized and commercial agendas of the worlds they attempt to link, with each boundary actor inscribing different meanings to a product’s carbon footprint in accordance with their specific subjectivities, commercial desires and epistemic framings. It is therefore shown that how a boundary object transforms greenhouse gas emissions into units of CO2e, the outcome is of distinct ideologies regarding ‘what’ a product's carbon footprint is and how it should be made legible. These politicized decisions, in turn inform specific reduction activities and ultimately advance distinct, specific and increasingly durable transition pathways to a low carbon society.

Federally-recognized tribes must adapt to many ecological challenges arising from climate change, from the effects of glacier retreat on the habitats of culturally significant species to how sea level rise forces human communities to... more

Federally-recognized tribes must adapt to many ecological challenges arising from climate change, from the effects of glacier retreat on the habitats of culturally significant species to how sea level rise forces human communities to relocate. The governmental and social institutions supporting tribes in adapting to climate change are often constrained by political obstructions, raising concerns about justice. Beyond typical uses of justice, which call attention to violations of formal rights or to considerations about the degree to which some populations may have caused anthropogenic climate change, a justice framework should guide how leaders, scientists and professionals of all heritages and who work with or for federally-recognized tribes understand what actions are morally essential for supporting tribes’ adaptation efforts. This paper motivates a shift to a forward-looking framework of justice. The framework situates justice within the systems of responsibilities that matter to tribes and many others, which range from webs of inter-species relationships to government-to-government partnerships. Justice is achieved when these systems of responsibilities operate in ways that support the continued flourishing of tribal communities.

To cope with climate change, less developed country like Madagascar have been invited by the United Nations to submit a National Adaptation Programs of Action (NAPA) that identifies priority projects on climate adaptation. Integrated... more

To cope with climate change, less developed country like Madagascar have been invited by the
United Nations to submit a National Adaptation Programs of Action (NAPA) that identifies
priority projects on climate adaptation. Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) is
among these priority projects. This one is also due to an update of the Governmental policy
on sustainable development of coastal and marine areas which have led to the development
of a national strategy for sustainable development of coastal and marine areas in Madagascar.
The analysis of PANA and ICZM however shows that they evolve in parallel and with few
complementarities. From a political sociology perspective and based on documentary research
and interviews conducted in Madagascar in 2013, this article will look first on how main
stakeholder have “problematized” adaptation to climate change in Madagascar. Then, this
will help us to better understand perceptions and tensions in defining problems and solutions
associated with this theme, pointing out incompatibility of perceptions and actions in order to
clarify the problems of implementation.

Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) is increasingly being advocated as a climate adaptation approach that can deliver multiple benefits to communities. EbA scholarship argues that community-based projects can strengthen those ecosystems that... more

Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) is increasingly being advocated as a climate adaptation approach that can deliver multiple benefits to communities. EbA scholarship argues that community-based projects can strengthen those ecosystems that deliver critical services to communities and in doing so enhance community resilience. In particular, the inclusion of indigenous and traditional knowledge (ITK) into community-based EbA projects is positioned as critical to successful climate adaptation. Yet, there is surprisingly little investigation into how ITK is being defined and incorporated into EbA initiatives. This paper critically reviews EbA literature and provides empirical examples from Vanuatu and Samoa to demonstrate the different ways ITK relates to EbA projects. We find that there is widespread recognition that ITK is important for indigenous and local communities and can be employed successfully in EbA. However, this recognition is more aspirational than practical and is not being necessarily translated into ITK-informed or ITK-driven EbA projects. ITK should not be conceptualized simply as a collection of local environmental information that is integrated with Western scientific knowledge. Instead, ITK is part of nested knowledge systems (information– practices–worldviews) of indigenous peoples. This knowledge includes local natural resource management, sociocultural governance structures, social norms, spiritual beliefs, and historical and contemporary experiences of colonial dispossession and marginalization. At present, most EbA projects focus on the provision of information to main decision-makers only; however, since ITK is held collectively, it is essential that entire communities are included in ITK EbA projects. There is a huge potential for researchers and ITK holders to coproduce knowledge that would be best placed to drive climate adaptation in a changing world.

Agriculture together with agro-forestry systems are perceived as a source of significant greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, with concomitant potentials for mitigation. It is among the economic sectors having the largest GHG mitigation... more

Agriculture together with agro-forestry systems are perceived as a source of significant greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, with concomitant potentials for mitigation. It is among the economic sectors having the largest GHG mitigation potential. Conversion to invigorating land uses and implementation of recommended management practices (RMP) can enhance soil organic carbon (SOC). The adoption of these alternatives is likely to have considerable benefits for some cropping systems under moderate climate change. The C sequestration potential in soils of terrestrial ecosystems is 3x10 9 tonnes C/year or 0.05% reduction of atmospheric CO 2 at the rate of 1 Mg/ha/year by improving C pool by the end of the year 2099. The role of forest and grasslands as a sink for atmospheric CO 2 is the subject of active debate. The carbon stock for the period 2006-2030 is projected to increase from 8.79x10 9 tonnes C to 9.75x10 9 tonnes C with forest cover becoming more or less stable, and new forest carbon accretions coming from the current initiatives of afforestation and reforestation programme. With the knowledge and information that is now emerging, the role of agro-forest and plantations in mitigation is becoming more and more important. Over the past decades, national policies of India aimed at conservation and sustainable management of forests have transformed India's forests into a net sink of CO 2. Not all improved management practices are suitable to all soils and ecological conditions. Dealing with many barriers to effective adaptation will require a comprehensive and dynamic policy approach covering a range of scales and issues. A crucial component of this approach is the implementation of adaptation assessment frame works that are relevant, robust and easily operated by all stakeholders, practitioners, policymakers and scientists.

This article analyzes the processes of risk visualization characterizing disaster risk reduction policies and, in particular, the digital artifacts the international world of disaster management uses in an effort to view threats to the... more

This article analyzes the processes of risk visualization characterizing disaster risk reduction policies and, in particular, the digital artifacts the international world of disaster management uses in an effort to view threats to the planet and render them open to human experience. The purpose of these artifacts is to foster experiences that grant both quantitative shape and social form to the nature of global risks. Tangible Earth, the first interactive digital globe, is the most sophisticated of these artifacts in that it strives to gather a wide, varied audience of humans and enroll them in co-producing the risks affecting the Earth. This process of delving into experiences of the globe as mediated by digital equipment mobilizes diverse ontologies: there is a “naturalist ontology” that represents nature as independent of the social sphere, as a force that remains insurgent and unpredictable despite efforts to quantitatively capture it through earth-monitoring instruments and probabilistic calculations, and there is also an “analogist ontology” in which nature is cast as indistinguishable from the social sphere on the grounds that both human and non-human collectives share the same propensity for resilience.

“Everything is made of qi. Qi is both a process and substance, and comes into being as the concrete manifestation of spacetime; differentiating into light and clear, the heavy and turbid, qi ( now discernible in terms of yin and yang)... more

“Everything is made of qi. Qi is both a process and substance, and comes into being as the concrete manifestation of spacetime; differentiating into light and clear, the heavy and turbid, qi ( now discernible in terms of yin and yang) becomes the basic stuff of the visible universe” [John Major] . In pre-modern traditional Chinese medicine, climate change qihou bianyi 氣候變易 is always contingent upon the ‘time and season’ shi 時 , ‘two-hour time periods’ shi chen 時辰, ‘day’ ri 日, ‘lunar month’ yue ⽉, ‘seventy two pentads’ qishier hou 七十二候, ’Twenty Four Periods of Qi ’ ershisige jieqi 二⼗四個節氣 , ‘four seasons’ si shi 四時, ‘year’ nian 年 or sui 歲 and ‘sixty spacetime units’ jia zi 甲⼦ . And ‘climate change’, which is now referred to in modern Chinese as qi hou bianhua, 氣候變化 as seen from the perspective of the Yellow Emperor’s Inner Cannon is one of those ‘natural time sequences’ shi xu that ‘mark’ changes and transformations in ‘nature’ tian. Paraphrasing the Yellow Emperor’s Manual, the pre- modern TCM scholar/ practitioner Yang Ru Hou (1861-1928) stated: The cosmic yin and yang qi of the ‘sky/heaven/celestial sphere’ tian and ‘earth terrestrial sphere’ di ascend and descend and climatic weather conditions during the ‘four seasons’ resonate with these changes. Humanity must harmonize and adapt to these changes as well. During spring and summer seasons, one must nurture the cosmic yang qi; while during the autumn and winter seasons one must nurture the cosmic yin qi. In this way, unusual illnesses will not come about. According to Chinese medical theory, if one maintains a balance of heart and mind and a qi (yang) and blood (yin) that flow in harmony with the world around them xin he qi ping 心和氣平, then there will be a presence of good health. And in accordance with the classical, modern, Eastern and Western senses, ‘good humour’ or good qi flow that is a natural effect of the alignment of emotions and seasons, which if absent should be restored.

Bu çalışmada, kuraklık felaketinin iklim değişikliğiyle bağlantısı, sorunun çok disiplinli özelliği göz önünde bulundurularak, kamuoyuna ve politika oluşturan kesimlere yol göstermeyi amaçlayan bir anlayışla ele alınmıştır. Kuraklık,... more

Bu çalışmada, kuraklık felaketinin iklim değişikliğiyle bağlantısı, sorunun çok disiplinli özelliği göz önünde bulundurularak, kamuoyuna ve politika oluşturan kesimlere yol göstermeyi amaçlayan bir anlayışla ele alınmıştır. Kuraklık, tanımından çözüm yollarına kadar politik yönetim gerektiren bir sorundur ve günümüzde kuraklığı iklim değişikliğinden ayrı bir şekilde ele almak, soruna gerçekçi çözümler bulunmasını engellemektedir. Politikacılar ve kamu yöneticileri, artık kuraklığı iklim değişikliği gerçeğiyle birlikte, hatta onun bir parçası olarak ele almak durumundadırlar.

The need to define and implement adaptation solutions has emerged since the early 1990s when the IPCC started assessing the changes, causes, potential impacts and responses to climate change. Yet, limited information exists on the... more

The need to define and implement adaptation solutions has emerged since the early 1990s when the IPCC started assessing the changes, causes, potential impacts and responses to climate change. Yet, limited information exists on the context-specific effectiveness of local adaptation of agronomic practices. The Near East and North Africa (NENA) region is one of the world’s regions with the lowest per capita natural resources availability and one of the most vulnerable to climate change. For these reasons, there is an urgent need to improve the development and implementation of adaptation plans and actions to cope with climate change. This research implements the systematic review (SR) methodology to assess the scientific literature in adopting climate change adaptation practices for agriculture at the farm level in the NENA region. Results highlight a significant knowledge gap in adaptation in the region and recommend intensifying targeted research and funding to cope with urgent regional climate risks to rural and agricultural livelihoods.

Abstract: In the context of the crisis of industrial modernity, adaptive capacity to new climatic and social-economic risks depends on the study of the perceptions and understan- ding that the involved actors have of those risks. Through... more

Abstract: In the context of the crisis of industrial modernity, adaptive capacity to new climatic and social-economic risks depends on the study of the perceptions and understan- ding that the involved actors have of those risks. Through interviews with family farmers from Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay, this paper describes how they perceive and respond to social-economic and climatic risks. Results confirm that social and perceptive barriers limit the understanding of climatic risks, which are experienced gradually and in the long term. Accordingly, farmers are not farseeing (“clarividente”) actors, and are thus unable to accurately foresee future climatic scenarios. On the other hand, beef producers from the South American Pampas do perceive family, economic and institutional risks threatening their productive activities and their livelihoods in a more direct, short-term manner, and do act to face them. This study confirms that the passage from risky situations to an effective  p...

In the Andes of Central Chile, flowering commences 1–2 months earlier on equatorial-(north-) facing than on polar-(south-) facing slopes, and pollinator assemblages also differ between these habitats. In order to understand the potential... more

In the Andes of Central Chile, flowering commences 1–2 months earlier on equatorial-(north-) facing than on polar-(south-) facing slopes, and pollinator assemblages also differ between these habitats. In order to understand the potential influence of these differences on gene flow, we monitored flowering periods and insect visitation rates to flowers of 60 individuals of Anarthrophyllum cumingii (Papilionaceae) on two equatorial-and two polar-facing slopes in the Andes of central Chile (33 35 0 S;70 32 0 W). Flowering began about 30 days earlier on equatorial-facing slopes. Flowering periods of individuals on slopes with the same aspect had a mean overlap of 0.52, while those on opposite slopes had a mean overlap of 0.15. On equatorial-facing slopes Yramea lathionoides (Lepidoptera) accounted for 60% of the visits to flowers of A. cumingii, while on polar-facing slopes Centris cineraria (Hymenoptera) was responsible for more than 80% of flower visits. Average similarities of visitor assemblages among individual plants on slopes with the same aspect was 0.83, while the mean similarity between individuals on opposite slopes was only 0.23. Within slopes fluorescent dyes were dispersed up to 40 m from the donor plants, but there was no movements of dyes between individuals growing on opposite slopes, even when they were separated by less than 10 m. Synchronous blooming and a common pollen vector are necessary conditions for pollen exchange between individuals. The overall probability of pollen exchange estimated by multiplying the inter-individual overlap for both factors, was nearly 0.5 for individuals growing on slopes with the same aspect, and less than 0.04 for individuals growing on opposite slopes. Consequently, at equivalent distances, the probability of pollen exchange between individuals growing on slopes of opposite aspect is more than 10-times lower than between those growing on the same slopes. Seed dispersal cannot compensate for restricted gene flow through pollination, because seeds of A. cumingii were dispersed less than 2 m away from a parent plant. Presumably, restricted gene flow could enhance genetic divergence between populations on slopes of contrasting aspects. This factor could be important in contributing to the high diversity and endemism in the Chilean Andes.

The simulation of complex adaptive systems with large numbers of individuals can be facilitated greatly in terms of mathematical difficulty and computer resource demand by employing aggregate models which look at the temporal evolution of... more

The simulation of complex adaptive systems with large numbers of individuals can be facilitated greatly in terms of mathematical difficulty and computer resource demand by employing aggregate models which look at the temporal evolution of mean state and variability of key characteristics of the system. This approach has been shown to effectively describe diverse complex systems such as tree stands, algal communities, and human subsistence schemes. I here introduce the educational version of the Global Land use and Technological Evolution Simulator, which describes the evolution of regional human populations, technologies and subsistence styles throughout the Holocene. Within this model framework, societal adaptations to slow and societal resilience to fast climate changes can be investigated. The educational model is tailored to final year high-school / early semester university students; it is used to introduce researchers outside the natural sciences to quantitative modeling of adaptation and resilience.

Urban green infrastructure (UGI) has the potential to address a wide range of challenges associated with rapidly growing cities in a changing climate, while also providing multiple environmental, economic and social benefits. However, the... more

Urban green infrastructure (UGI) has the potential to address a wide range of challenges associated with rapidly growing cities in a changing climate, while also providing multiple environmental, economic and social benefits. However, the location of projects is often determined according to a single potential benefit rather than a set of benefits. Furthermore, while UGI is recognized as a successful strategy to support resilience in many cities around the world, it has not been implemented in Uruguay. This study develops a model to identify priority areas in need of green infrastructure in Montevideo, Uruguay. The GIS-based model, termed the “Green Infrastructure Suitability Model” (GISM) is based on a multi-criteria decision analysis approach and is similar in structure to land suitability analysis. The model considers a range of socioeconomic, biophysical and environmental factors to prioritize the need for UGI across the case-study region. Resulting suitability maps identify are...

Bangladesh is likely to be one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to climate change due to geographical location and geo-morphological conditions. Bangladesh experiences extremely disastrous situations like a cyclone, flood,... more

Bangladesh is likely to be one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to climate change due to geographical location and geo-morphological conditions. Bangladesh experiences extremely disastrous situations like a cyclone, flood, saline water intrusion, water logging, heavy rainfall, river erosion, storm surge, etc. that occur frequently in the coastal part of Bangladesh. This results in a huge loss of lives, damages properties and degrades the integrity of the environmental components. This study was conducted on 2 villages (Chotta Chalna and Shivnagar) of Dacope Upazila of Khulna district with the purpose of assessing existing climate change adaptation scenarios and techniques for mitigating climate change-related risks. Necessary data were collected from various sources namely direct household survey, focus group discussion, and key informants interview and from various journals, related thesis papers. About 46% of the respondents cited cyclone is the most terrific type haz...

Climate change is one of the most important global challenges in the twenty-first century, given that a changing climate is likely to have negative and potentially irreversible consequences for the environment and human beings. Drawing... more

Climate change is one of the most important global challenges in the twenty-first century, given that a changing climate is likely to have negative and potentially irreversible consequences for the environment and human beings. Drawing upon Social Representations Theory and Identity Process Theory from social psychology, we argue that research should focus upon, and successfully integrate, three levels of analysis, namely (1) how climate change knowledge is constructed and circulates (social representation); (2) the role of identity in relation to these representations (identity); and (3) how people might respond to them (action). It is suggested that identity processes may determine how people process social representations of climate change, and that they mediate the link between representations and environmental behaviour. Understanding human responses to climate change necessitates an integrative social sciences perspective, in terms of disciplinary, theoretical and methodological approaches.

Visual landscape design representations facilitate communication and knowledge exchange during participatory planning and design processes. The production of representations is considered to be a discursive act: actors and institutions... more

Visual landscape design representations facilitate communication and knowledge exchange during participatory planning and design processes. The production of representations is considered to be a discursive act: actors and institutions construct knowledge with a certain authority and credibility through the use of visual expression. We aim to study the context in which the production of representations is embedded and how this context manifests itself in the communicative qualities of design representations. We present a visual discourse analysis of landscape design representations, employing empirical examples from the transdisciplinary design competition Rebuild by Design. The analysis uncovers interdependencies among three components of the visual discourse: the arrangement of participatory processes, media interactivity and the visual rhetoric embedded in the composition and style of the image. A conscious use of these discursive components could help prevent miscommunication, manage participant expectations and increase the validity of participatory design process outcomes.

This paper describes two case studies of demand-side water management in the Okanagan region of southern British Columbia, Canada. The case studies reveal important lessons about how local context shapes the process of adaptation; in... more

This paper describes two case studies of demand-side water management in the Okanagan region of southern British Columbia, Canada. The case studies reveal important lessons about how local context shapes the process of adaptation; in these cases, adaptation to rising and changing water demand under a regime of increasingly limited supply in a semi-arid region. Both case studies represent examples of water meter implementation, specifically volume-based pricing in a residential area and as a compliance tool in a mainly farming district. While the initiative was successful in the residential setting, agricultural metering met with stiff resistance. These cases suggest many factors shape the character of the adaptation process, including: interpretation of the signal relative to context, newness of the approach, consumer values, and local and provincial political agendas. Although context has been explored in resource management circles, thus far climate change adaptation research has not adequately discussed the embeddedness of adaptation. In other words, how context matters and what aspects of context, unrelated to climate change, could encourage or thwart the act of adapting. This study is a simple illustration of the potential drivers, barriers and enabling factors that have influenced the adaptation process of water management decisions in the Okanagan.

In Santiago de Chile, the combination of recent urbanization patterns, the growing demand for land, and climate change has created challenges, notably in terms of the amplification of hazard generation and hazard exposure. This paper... more

In Santiago de Chile, the combination of recent urbanization patterns, the growing demand for land, and climate change has created challenges, notably in terms of the amplification of hazard generation and hazard exposure. This paper analyses the changes in land use/land cover, their impact on current flood and heat hazards, and the consequences for dwelling exposure. It adopts a hazard and exposure assessment approach to flood and heat hazard that allows for evaluation of the interlinkages and consequences of interweaving processes of urbanization and climate change in the Metropolitan Region of Santiago de Chile. The results clearly show that loss of green spaces and agricultural land to built-up areas goes hand in hand with the loss of important infiltration, cooling and retention areas, all of which leads to greater hazard exposure. The paper furthermore analyses the exposed population in terms of their material housing conditions. Surprisingly, those who are more likely to live in hazard-prone areas cannot be described exclusively as "the poor", albeit there are striking differences between flood and heat exposure.

Intraspecific variation in body pigmentation is an ecologically and evolutionary important trait; however, the pigmentation related trade-offs in marine zooplankton are poorly understood. We tested the effects of intrapopulation... more

Intraspecific variation in body pigmentation is an ecologically and evolutionary important trait; however, the pigmentation related trade-offs in marine zooplankton are poorly understood. We tested the effects of intrapopulation phenotypic variation in the pigmentation of the copepod Eurytemora affinis on predation risk, foraging, growth, metabolic activity and antioxidant capacity. Using pigmented and unpigmented specimens, we compared (1) predation and selectivity by the invertebrate predator Cercopagis pengoi, (2) feeding activity of the copepods measured as grazing rate in experiments and gut fluorescence in situ, (3) metabolic activity assayed as RNA:DNA ratio in both experimental and field-collected copepods, (4) reproductive output estimated as egg ratio in the population, and (5) total antioxidant capacity. Moreover, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) COI gene variation was analysed. The pigmented individuals were at higher predation risk as evidenced by significantly higher predation rate by C. pengoi on pigmented individuals and positive selection by the predator fed pigmented and unpigmented copepods in a mixture. However, the antioxidant capacity, RNA:DNA and egg ratio values were significantly higher in the pigmented copepods, whereas neither feeding rate nor gut fluorescence differed between the pigmented and unpigmented copepods. The phenotypic variation in pigmentation was not associated with any specific mtDNA genotype. Together, these results support the metabolic stimulation hypothesis to explain variation in E. affinis pigmentation, which translates into beneficial increase in growth via enhanced metabolism and antioxidant protective capacity, together with disadvantageous increase in predation risk. We also suggest an alternative mechanism for the metabolic stimulation via elevated antioxidant levels as a primary means of increasing metabolism without the increase in heat absorbance. The observed trade-offs are relevant to evolutionary mechanisms underlying plasticity and adaptation and have the capacity to modify strength of complex trophic interactions. Citation: Gorokhova E, Lehtiniemi M, Motwani NH (2013) Trade-Offs between Predation Risk and Growth Benefits in the Copepod Eurytemora affinis with Contrasting Pigmentation. PLoS ONE 8(8): e71385.

Global climate action plans risk resulting to climate maladaptation and shocks when prudent measures are inapt. Adaptation strategies require multidisciplinary approach from all sectors with periodic monitoring and evaluation which are... more

Global climate action plans risk resulting to climate maladaptation and shocks when prudent measures are inapt. Adaptation strategies require multidisciplinary approach from all sectors with periodic monitoring and evaluation which are carefully planned, locally adaptable and results-oriented. For decades, various governments, development practitioners and international organizations have made concerted efforts in tackling large scale climate events. These stern initiatives forms part of Millennium Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically SDG 13 meant to combat climate change. The increasing demand for frameworks that effectively monitor and examine the outcomes of these huge investments made by policy-makers across regions have enhanced the evaluation and monitoring of various climate change adaptation strategies. This study sought to assess the effectiveness and sustainability of initiated adaptation strategies. The study used descriptive statistics based on informants’ ...

Researchers can assess the novel challenges and opportunities that global climate change may present to human beings and activities by examining how similar challenges and opportunities already posed have been met. Using the experiences... more

Researchers can assess the novel challenges and opportunities that global climate change may present to human beings and activities by examining how similar challenges and opportunities already posed have been met. Using the experiences of individuals, groups, and places in other times and in the con­temporary world as analogues for climate change may help to refine our sense of how important such climate changes would be, help "to determine how flexible (or rigid) societies are or have been in dealing with climate-related environmental changes," and "help us to identify societal strengths and weak­nesses in coping ... so that we can reinforce those strengths and reduce the weaknesses" (Glantz 1988: 3-4). Reasoning by analogy has dangers and limi­tations as well as uses. That analogues are likely to be employed in discussions of climate change makes an assessment of the method all the more important.

A good understanding of climate change damages is vital to design effective adaptation policies and measures. Using a dataset of probabilistic sea-level rise and other of flood damages and protection cost curves for the 600 largest... more

A good understanding of climate change damages is vital to design effective adaptation policies and measures. Using a dataset of probabilistic sea-level rise and other of flood damages and protection cost curves for the 600 largest European coastal cities we generate stochastic damage curves and their distributions with and without adaptation. We apply the Generalized Extreme Value distribution to characterize the distributions and calculate two risk measures: the Value at Risk and the Expected Shortfall, which contribute to understanding the magnitude and probability of high-end sea-level rise represented by the upper tail of the distribution. This allows the costs of sea-level rise to be estimated (that is, in addition to other costs related to coastal extreme events) and supports decision-makers in integrating the high uncertainty related to future projections. This knowledge is necessary for an adequate risk management that does not underestimate risk. Furthermore, it allows city planners to tailor their risk tolerance. A great number of cities in Europe are currently undertaking adaptation plans or have already done so. Making these findings available should therefore be of great priority value to inform these processes.

Mayors Adapt - the Covenant of Mayors Initiative on Climate Change Adaptation set up by the European Commission for engaging cities and local authorities in taking action to adapt to climate change. As cities were signing up the... more

Mayors Adapt - the Covenant of Mayors Initiative on Climate Change Adaptation set up by the European Commission for engaging cities and local authorities in taking action to adapt to climate change. As cities were signing up the initiative commit for Covenant of Mayors as a contribution to the aim of the EU for increasing energy efficiency and use of renewable energy sources on their territories, so the signing up for the Mayors Adapt Initiative is big step towards EU Adaptation to Climate Change.

ABSTRACT The changing nature of climatic factors has different impacts on agriculture based areas, periods and crops. Farmers are the most vulnerable group who are affected both directly and indirectly through climatic changes. In the... more

ABSTRACT The changing nature of climatic factors has different impacts on agriculture based areas, periods and crops. Farmers are the most vulnerable group who are affected both directly and indirectly through climatic changes. In the study area in Malaysia, climatic changes have adverse impacts on farmers. Due to climatic change, productivity and profitability of paddy cultivation have declined in the Integrated Agricultural Development Area, North-West Selangor.

Riassunto In questo articolo gli autori analizzano i principali fattori ecologici che determinano il funzionamento dei laghi artificiali localizzati nel meridione d'Italia e nelle isole maggiori. In particolare, viene illustrato come il... more

Riassunto In questo articolo gli autori analizzano i principali fattori ecologici che determinano il funzionamento dei laghi artificiali localizzati nel meridione d'Italia e nelle isole maggiori. In particolare, viene illustrato come il ciclo idrologico annuale di questi ecosistemi sia fortemente influenzato dalle attività umane connesse all'uso dell'acqua invasata. Tali attività spesso interferiscono negativamente con la dinamica dei fattori fisici (stratificazione/circolazione), chimici (concentrazioni di nutrienti e ossigeno) e biologici (successione stagionale del fitoplancton) che governano il funzionamento di questi ecosistemi. Comprendere come il cambiamento climatico in atto influenzi il ciclo idrologico, sia quello naturale sia quello alterato dalle attività umane, è fondamentale per assicurare una gestione oculata e consapevole dei laghi artificiali volta a minimizzare gli eventuali effetti negativi che una ridotta disponibilità idrica e un aumento delle temperature medie annuali possono esercitare sulla qualità delle acque invasate e, più in generale, sui servizi ecosistemici cui provvedono i laghi artificiali. PAROLE CHIAVE: ecosistemi acquatici / stratificazione-circolazione / nutrienti / cambiamento climatico / pseudo-eutrofizzazione Man-made lakes of southern Italy and its islands In this paper the authors analyze the main factors driving the ecological functioning of man-made lakes located in the southern part of Italy and in its main islands. The annual hydrological cycle of these ecosystems is strongly influenced by human activities which often negatively interfere with the dynamics of physical (stratification/circulation patterns), chemical (nutrients and oxygen availability) and biological (seasonal succession of phytoplankton) factors. Understanding how the climate change influences the hydrological cycle, both in natural and human-altered conditions, is of paramount importance to warrant a sound management of man-made lakes, addressed toward minimizing the negative effects exerted by a reduced water availability and the increased annual temperatures on the quality of the stored waters and on the ecosystem services provided by man-made lakes.

Recent decades have witnessed a steady increase in efforts from a range of actors to facilitate and support meaningful and effective engagement with coastal communities and stakeholders. Indeed, this move towards improved participatory... more

Recent decades have witnessed a steady increase in efforts from a range of actors to facilitate and support meaningful and effective engagement with coastal communities and stakeholders. Indeed, this move towards improved participatory approaches are increasingly framed as being integral to successful and sustainable management of coastal resources and spaces, including in the context of climate adaptation The effectiveness of the processes, structures and frameworks underpinning coastal community engagement has always been subject to external and internal drivers; however, the global threat posed by COVID-19 presented, and continues to present, an unexpected shift in approach, and the need for rapid adaptation by those of us working within these spheres. Using the Coastal Communities Adapting Together (CCAT) project as a case study, we explore how engagement with coastal communities and stakeholders in the project areas of Fingal, Ireland, and Pembroke-shire, Wales, has been impacted and forced to adapt as a result of COVID-19. Through a qualitative data collection process, we explore how project teams across different scales have rapidly adapted their models of community and stakeholder engagement, identify successes and failures, and explore challenges that have been faced. Finally, we consider if the legacy of COVID-19 has provided an opportunity for coastal community engagement approaches being used across the globe to become more diverse, adapting to new technologies and increasing accessibility and effectiveness. Insights identified as fundamental to successful adaptation and enhancing resilience include: a rapid response to change, adoption of a diversity of techniques, broadened participation and supported social learning and knowledge exchange.

Future climate warming is expected to have a significant effect on the operation of Earth and Ecological systems. A key concern in the future is water resource availability. In regions such as the Tibet Plateau (TP) lakes and glaciers... more

Future climate warming is expected to have a significant effect on the operation of Earth and Ecological systems. A key concern in the future is water resource availability. In regions such as the Tibet Plateau (TP) lakes and glaciers appear to be highly sensitive to climate forcing and variations in the size and extent of these systems will have profound socioeconomic and environmental consequences in South and Central Asia. Although the variety of glaciers and lake son the TP is a heavily researched and discussed topic the interaction between glaciers/lakes and climate change has not be thoroughly investigated. Here we present, through a review of existing studies and original remote sensing analysis, a reconstruction of changes in the spatial coverage of glaciers and lakes on the TP from 1990 to 2015 along with an analysis of climate data for the same period. The results revealed that these systems responded to changes in both temperature and precipitation but the nature of this response, and the controlling factor, was spatially diverse. During this interval the total number of lakes increased from 868 to 1207, thus a large number of new lakes (n = 339) formed. The total water surface area of the lakes increase from 38,823.3 km 2 in 1990 to 48,793.0 km 2 in 2015, at a rate of 383.5 km 2 yr-1. Over this period intensive glacial shrinkage occurred, primarily driven by increasing average temperature, except in the Karakoram Mountains where a slight increase in glacier extent was explained by low and stable temperatures along with increasing precipitation. The expansion of lakes in the central and northeastern TP can, therefore, be explained by a trend of increasing precipitation and the accelerated melting of glaciers associated with rising temperatures, both of which contributed to the enhanced total basin runoff. The shrinkage of lake areas along the Himalayan Mountains is accounted for by low precipitation coupled with high evaporation and limited basin space. The lakes within the Qaidam Basin express a complex pattern of response in association with fluctuating precipitation and strong evaporation. The pattern of shrinking glaciers and expanding lakes indicate that water-cycle processes on the TP have been accelerating during the past 25 years. Under current climates and future climate change, the shrinkage of glaciers and the enlargement of lakes may be expected to continue to accelerate until a "tipping point" is reached when the meltwater of declining glaciers can no longer sustain the enhanced

12th Annual Green Economics Institute Conference 10-12th June 2017 3 Days St Hugh's College, University of Oxford, Keeping Social and Environmental Justice Alive in an age of Tyranny.. Reforming Economics. Green Finance, Green... more

12th Annual Green Economics Institute Conference 10-12th June 2017
3 Days St Hugh's College, University of Oxford, Keeping Social and Environmental Justice Alive in an age of Tyranny..
Reforming Economics.
Green Finance, Green Investment & Green Economics
Reclaiming The Economy from Privatisers, Fossil Fuellers, Xenophobes and Divide and Rulers.
Keeping social and environmental justice alive in this new age of Barbarism- Post Truth and Post Science

Projects in the forestry sector, and land-use change and forestry projects more generally, have the potential to help mitigate global warming by acting as sinks for greenhouse gasses, particularly CO2. However, concerns have been... more

Projects in the forestry sector, and land-use change and forestry projects more generally, have the potential to help mitigate global warming by acting as sinks for greenhouse gasses, particularly CO2. However, concerns have been expressed that participation in carbon-sink projects may be constrained by high costs. This problem may be particularly severe for projects involving smallholders in developing countries. Of particular concern are the transaction costs incurred in developing projects, measuring, certifying and selling the carbon-sequestration services generated by such projects. This paper addresses these issues by reviewing the implications of transaction and abatement costs in carbon-sequestration

Climate change may have dramatic consequences for several regions. Most vulnerable are fragile countries with limited capacities to adapt. Without timely action, the stresses induced by climate change may increase the risk of violent... more

Climate change may have dramatic consequences for several regions. Most vulnerable are fragile countries with limited capacities to adapt. Without timely action, the stresses induced by climate change may increase the risk of violent conflict. Designing and implementing adaptation strategies is becoming imperative to mitigate conflict potentials and prevent escalation. This article will discuss existing national and international approaches with focus on the UNFCCC process. It will be emphasized that a purely technical understanding of adaptation is insufficient to cope with the socio-political consequences of climate change. Indeed, adaptation may even contribute to conflict potentials if ill-designed. Thus, it is necessary to develop conflict-sensitive approaches complemented by internationally supported capacity development measures. 

Recent UK government policy on climate change, and wider policy movement within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, emphasise the building of adaptive capacity. But what are the institutional constraints that shape... more

Recent UK government policy on climate change, and wider policy movement within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, emphasise the building of adaptive capacity. But what are the institutional constraints that shape capacity to build adaptive organisations? The authors synthesise theory from social learning and institutional aspects of multilevel environmental governance to help unpack the patterns of individual and collective action within organisations that can enhance or restrict organisational adaptive capacity in the face of abrupt climate change. Theoretical synthesis is grounded by empirical work with a local dairy farmers group and two supporting public sector bodies that are both local actors in their own rights and which also shape the operating environment for other local actors (the Environment Agency and the Welsh Assembly and Assembly-sponsored public bodies). Providing space within and between local organisations for individuals to develop private as well as officially sanctioned social relationships is supported as a pathway to enable social learning. It is also a resource for adaptation that requires little financial investment but does call for a rethinking of the personal skills and working routines that are incentivised within organisations.

To achieve a successful and sustainable adaptation to climate change we need to transform the way we think about change. Much water management research has focused on technical innovation with a range of new solutions developed to achieve... more

To achieve a successful and sustainable adaptation to climate change we need to transform the way we think about change. Much water management research has focused on technical innovation with a range of new solutions developed to achieve a ‘more sustainable and integrated urban water management cycle’. But Danish municipalities and utility companies are struggling to bring such solutions into practice. ‘Green infrastructure’, for example, requires the consideration of a larger range of aspects related to the urban context than the traditional urban water system optimization. There is the need for standardized methods and guidelines to organize transdisciplinary processes where different types of knowledge and perspectives are taken into account. On the basis of the macro–meso–micro pattern inspired by complexity science and transition theory, we developed a conceptual framework to organize processes addressing the complexity characterizing urban water management in the context of c...

The Arctic is a global hotspot of climate change, which is impacting the livelihoods of remote Inuit communities. We conduct a longitudinal assessment of climate change vulnerability drawing upon fieldwork conducted in 2004 and 2015 in... more

The Arctic is a global hotspot of climate change, which is impacting the livelihoods of remote Inuit communities. We conduct a longitudinal assessment of climate change vulnerability drawing upon fieldwork conducted in 2004 and 2015 in Ikpiarjuk (Arctic Bay), Nunavut, and focusing on risks associated with subsistence harvesting activities. Specifically, we employ the same conceptual and methodological approach to identify and characterize who is vulnerable, to what stresses, and why, assessing how this has changed over time, including re-interviewing individuals involved in the original study. We find similarities between the two periods, with many of the observed environmental changes documented in 2004 having accelerated over the last decade, exacerbating risks of land use: changing sea ice regimes and wind patterns are the most widely documented at both times, with new observations reporting more frequent sighting of polar bear and orca. Socioeconomic and technological changes have altered the context in climate change impacts are being experienced and responded to, both exacerbating and moderating vulnerabilities compared to 2004. The adoption of new technology, including GPS and widespread use of the internet, has helped land users manage changing conditions while sharing networks remain strong, despite concern noted in the 2004 study that they were weakening. Challenges around access to financial resources and concern over the incomplete transmission of some environmental knowledge and land skills to younger generations continue to increase sensitivity and limit adaptive capacity to changing climatic conditions.

There is increasing interest in long-term plans that can adapt to changing situations under conditions of deep uncertainty. We argue that a sustainable plan should not only achieve economic, environmental, and social objectives, but... more

There is increasing interest in long-term plans that can adapt to changing situations under conditions of deep uncertainty. We argue that a sustainable plan should not only achieve economic, environmental, and social objectives, but should be robust and able to be adapted over time to (unforeseen) future conditions. Large numbers of papers dealing with robustness and adaptive plans have begun to appear, but the literature is fragmented. The papers appear in disparate journals, and deal with a wide variety of policy domains. This paper (1) describes and compares a family of related conceptual approaches to designing a sustainable plan, and (2) describes several computational tools supporting these approaches. The conceptual approaches all have their roots in an approach to longterm planning called Assumption-Based Planning. Guiding principles for the design of a sustainable adaptive plan are: explore a wide variety of relevant uncertainties, connect short-term targets to long-term goals over time, commit to short-term actions while keeping options open, and continuously monitor the world and take actions if necessary. A key computational tool across the conceptual approaches is a fast, simple (policy analysis) model that is used to make large numbers of runs, in order to explore the full range of uncertainties and to identify situations in which the plan would fail.

Many years of significant investment into the production and adoption of productivity-enhancing technologies and practices in agriculture have not yielded the desired results. Most smallholder farmers in Africa remain trapped in poverty.... more

Many years of significant investment into the production and adoption of productivity-enhancing technologies and practices in agriculture have not yielded the desired results. Most smallholder farmers in Africa remain trapped in poverty. Having realised that addressing production challenges alone is not enough to impact the lives of poor smallholder farmers, resources and attention have now shifted to the marketing side of agriculture. Organising farmers into farmer producer organisations (FPOs), like clubs, associations and cooperatives, has been one of the strategies aimed at commercialising smallholder agriculture. In Malawi, smallholder farmers have been organised into FPOs of various types and sizes. This qualitative study interrogated the effectiveness of FPOs in Malawi in meeting their objectives, including the objective of enhancing commercialisation of smallholder farmers through increased access to farm inputs, markets, and agricultural extension and advisory services. Mchinji and Ntchisi districts in central Malawi were sampled for the study. We found that while farmers who are members of FPOs have more and frequent access to extension services and affordable inputs, member farmers do not enjoy any advantage over their non-member counterparts when it comes to access to markets and incomes. On the contrary, we found that in some cases farmer members of FPOS face more disadvantages on the market, as they sell their produce too late in the selling season when even exploitative vendors are unwilling to buy. This results in member farmers accepting even lower prices for their produce; situations which leave them with very low farm incomes. There is a need, therefore, to dedicate more resources and a lot of brainstorming in coming up with new models of FPOs that have the capacity to secure profitable markets for farmers, and that will enable the generation of higher farm incomes for their members.